Bottle of prismatic shape with a base in the form of a sector of a circle for packaging fluid foodstuffs

ABSTRACT

For fluid foodstuffs which, for storage purposes, are to undergo a very-high-pressure treatment in a special apparatus comprising a cylindrical chamber, a prismatic bottle is provided, its cross section being a circular sector, its body having a volume of around e.g. 750 cm 3  or 1000 cm 3 .

[0001] The invention relates to a bottle whose special shape has beendesigned to maximize the use of an installation for the treatment offluid foodstuffs intended for long-term storage, this treatment, whichconsists of pasteurization and/or sterilization, involving the use ofvery high pressures. This makes it necessary to use a hyperbaric chamberwhich, in order to withstand the very high pressures employed, which areof around 6000/8000 atmospheres, must be a solid of revolution, and inparticular a cylinder of relatively limited diameter.

[0002] A plurality of sealed bottles must be accommodated in thecylindrical hyperbaric chamber, the residual spaces of which must befilled with water or other liquid to complete the filling of thischamber.

[0003] The bottle according to the present invention enables the maximumuse of the volume of said chamber, this involving clear advantages interms of costs and output.

[0004] The present bottle is useful for packaging fluid foodstuffs whichare to undergo, for storage purposes, the treatment referred to above inthe cylindrical chamber designed to accommodate the filled and sealedbottles together with water or other liquid to fill up the rest of thechamber. For the purposes indicated above, the present bottle is ofprismatic shape with a cross section in the form of a circular sector.

[0005] In particular, according to a first embodiment of the invention,the cross section of the bottle is a circular sector with an angle ofapproximately 72° (one fifth of one complete revolution) and height ofaround 17.5 cm with slightly rounded edges due to manufacturingconstraints, the whole being such as to give an internal volume of about750 cm³.

[0006] This not only makes it possible to maximize the use of the volumeof the abovementioned cylindrical chamber, the shape and volume of whichare imposed by construction, but also to package bottles whose volume isstandardized to meet the applicable legislation and the most typicalrequirements of consumers.

[0007] According to a second embodiment of the invention, the bottle isof prismatic shape, its cross section being a circular sector with anangle of 60° (one sixth of one complete revolution), the edges beingslightly rounded, due to manufacturing constraints, and its internalvolume being approximately 1000 cm³. The radius of curvature of thecurved wall can be approximately 8.4 cm and the height around 28.5 cmplus the short joining surface and the neck representing approximately1.5 cm.

[0008] According to this embodiment, six bottles are put together tocreate an approximately cylindrical shape, thus maximizing the use ofthe volume of the cylindrical hyperbaric chamber, the shape and volumeof which are imposed by construction. Each packaged bottle has astandardized volume of approximately 1000 cm³, which satisfies consumerrequirements.

[0009] The drawing shows in exhaustive detail, embodiments of the bottleaccording to the invention. In the drawing:

[0010]FIG. 1 shows the bottle according to a first embodiment of theinvention, in a perspective view;

[0011] FIGS. 2-7 show the geometrical views on II-II, III-III and IV-IVas marked in FIG. 7, V-V as marked in FIGS. 3 and 7, a bottom view and atop view on VII-VII as marked in FIG. 2 of the bottle of FIG. 1;

[0012]FIG. 8 is a plan view of five bottles placed together to give acylindrical shape;

[0013]FIG. 9 shows a perspective view of a bottle according to theinvention in a different embodiment;

[0014] FIGS. 10-15 are geometrical views on X-X, XI-XI and XII-XII asmarked in FIG. 15 and on XII-XII as marked in FIG. 11, and also a bottomview on XIV-XIV and a top view on XV-XV as marked in FIG. 10 of a bottleaccording to FIG. 9; and

[0015]FIG. 16 is a plan view showing an assembly of six bottles placedtogether to give a cylindrical shape.

[0016] With reference to FIGS. 1 to 8, as is clear from the drawing, theshape of the bottles is such that a number of bottles placed togetherwith their dihedral angles converging, together occupy a circularcylindrical volume.

[0017] If the bottles are to be made with a capacity of 750 cm³,dimensions A and B are about 8.4 cm and 17.5 cm, which enables themaximum use of the usable volume of an apparatus of the abovementionedtype available for treating the bottles. The above details can be variedto a limited degree depending on what slope is necessary between thebody and the neck to enable the bottle to withstand vertical stacking.

[0018] FIGS. 9 to 16 show a different embodiment of the bottlesaccording to the invention. As is clear from the drawing, in this casethe bottles are so shaped that six bottles, placed together with thedihedral angles converging, create, when viewed as a whole, a circularcylindrical shape.

[0019] Due to dimensional considerations imposed by the morphology ofthe hyperbaric chamber, dimension A must be approximately 8.4 cm; if thebottles are to have a capacity of approximately 1000 cm³, dimension B isapproximately 28.5 cm. This allows the maximum use of the usable volumeof an apparatus of the abovementioned type available for treating thebottles, bearing in mind the limited extra volume required for thenecessary slope between body and neck to withstand vertical stacking,and for the presence of the neck.

1. A bottle for packaging fluid foodstuffs that are to undergo averyhigh-pressure treatment in a special apparatus comprising acylindrical chamber designed to accommodate the filled and sealedbottles together with water or other liquid to fill up the rest of saidchamber, which bottle is of prismatic shape, its cross section being inthe form of a circular sector.
 2. A bottle according to claim 1, havinga cross section in the form of a circular sector with an angle ofapproximately 72° (one fifth of one complete revolution), height ofaround 17.5 cm and volume of around 750 cm³, with slightly rounded edgesdue to manufacturing constraints, the whole being such as to maximizethe use of the volume of the abovementioned cylindrical chamber.
 3. Abottle according to claim 1, having a cross section in the form of acircular sector with an angle of 60° (one sixth of one completerevolution), height around 28.5 cm and volume around 1000 cm³, withslightly rounded edges due to manufacturing constraints.
 4. A bottleaccording to claim 3, comprising an extra volume for the slope of thejoining shoulder between the wall of the body of the bottle and the neckand for the neck, of around 1.5 cm, thereby maximizing the use of thevolume of the abovementioned cylindrical chamber.
 5. A bottle forpackaging fluid foodstuffs of prismatic shape with a base in the form ofa sector of a circle, the whole as described and illustrated and for theobjects indicated.